In short: they just get better and betterIn full: Having read others reviews,i do agree whith most of the comments.It would not be the race it is whith out all the hold ups snarl ups loads of runners in the way or time to get home this is the BUZZ PEOPLE.I personaly had a great run not a pb but that will never happen again.As i'm approaching 60,my pb is 58 min i am now running 1.17-1.27.I am already booked in for next years race so lets get ready to rumble [ or tumble ]Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Already signed up for 2012!In full: My second time doing GSR and on the whole I loved it! There will always be difficulties with organising 24,000 runners and their supporters. Some people just don't do as they are told! And that does take a bit of the shine off the day for others.I was a little confused about the wave allocations. I'm sure I put an expected time of 1:50 and I was in the green (last) wave. So why was there a 2 hour and a 2:10 pacemaker in the white wave? Surely that is just encouraging people to run slower than the pace for that wave. I don't think the organisers can do much to stop people lying or seriously over-estimating their ability on the entry form. Perhaps they could give people the opportunity to revise their estimated time nearer to race day? I've just entered for next year and I really don't know how well (or otherwise) my training will go over the next 12 months. I'll have a better idea a couple of months before the race. Toilets - there'll never be enough! Having said that I think I've queued for longer in pubs than I did at the start (about 15 minutes) so could have been worse. Better marshalling of the start areas would be good - annoying when you're trying to join in with the warm up and you have to keep stopping to let non-participants pass by. There should be clear instructions for non-runners to leave the start area at least 5 minutes before the warm up. Likewise at the finish - so many supporters crowding the finish area it was hard for exhausted and bewildered runners to find the way out, yet the meeting area on Castle Field was not busy. Again, the organisation was there and people were asked to use it but many chose to ignore it.Those are just little niggles though. On the whole I really enjoyed it. The crowds are brilliant, the other runners are fantastic and the atmosphere is very welcoming and supportive. Like any city there are nicer parts and less nice parts but wherever you are the locals are there cheering you on. A lovely flat course with only one serious bottleneck at the dockyard. And I knocked 9 minutes off last year's time :-)Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Great Day! Really enjoyed itIn full: I started in the orange wave with a target time of 1.25, I was trying to cut last years time by 3 mins! I ended up running with the 1.20 pacer and he was brilliant. I managed to get a 1.20 (and 56 secs) The course runs around historic dockyard which I find interesting, and I was looking forward to running along the seafront into a head wind (I like a challenge!!) Unfortunately the wind was not as strong as I have previously experienced!!The course is well sign posted and the marshals were all very encouraging. The music was great I loved the boost zone at the end. Also I liked the idea of putting the names on the running numbers.Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Very enjoyable running experienceIn full: This was my first GSR and my first event for 6 yrs following different injuries. I have to agree with most comments, especially the traffic congestion at the end, but understandable due to the amount of runners. Nothing a bit of patience can't deal with (unlike some drivers, you know who you are).I do have a gripe with comments relating to slower runners in the so called wrong wave though. I entered the GSR as a charity runner and I was never asked my target time when entering. Therefore I was put into the Orange Zone automatically, I had no input into why, due to my standard. I can understand peoples frustration at getting held up by slower runners, I got help up myself a few times and I only came in at 1hr 32 mins (which I was chuffed about I hasten to add). So please don't make us SLOWER runners feel guilty for being SLOWER when I didn't actually ask to be in the Orange Zone. I'm sure I wasn't the only one in this situation.But, that gripe over, I loved the event and will definatley be back next year. Well done BUPA. Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Well organised event - shame about getting out of the car park at the endIn full: This was my first Great South Run. We arrived by car quite early, parking was straight forward. I started in the Orange sector, next to the 1hr 20 pacer - he was very friendly and was chatting to the runners who were going to follow him. It was a bit congested at the start but you expect that in such big events. Generally the course was flat, the hardest bit was the last 2 miles along the sea front. Good organisation at the end of the race with plenty of drinks and t-shirts of all sizes, not just medium and x-large! The worst bit was getting out of the car park and the town centre. Im afraid we experienced car park rage from someone who was too eager to jump the queue - we had been waiting for 30 minutes and moved about a foot. If the "lady" is reading this, Im not a wife beater and Im not gay!" and its not good form to say you would have crashed into us if you had been driving! Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Easily the best 10 mile race in the country and maybe the world.In full: My 4 fastest 10 mile performances have been here even though it can get a little windy. There are so many good runners you allways have something to pull you along. At the same time there are plenty of newbies and people there for the ride so nobody should feel out of place. Lots to do around the start finish area and great for supporters as you can easily move between start 10K and finish line. Plan to spend your day in Portsmouth because with 25,000 runners you won't be getting out quick. There's plenty to do anyway so enjoy the fun.Date of review: November 1, 2011

In short: Very flat and great PB potential on a calm day if you can dodge slower runnersIn full: Thoroughly enjoyed this race. Great atmosphere and support from crowds. In mass start races it always seems to be a problem sorting out ability groups. Even though I started at the front of the orange wave I still spent the first couple of miles intermitently jogging behind slower runners and weaving around them when the opportunity arose. Supposedly 24,000 entries but only 16,000 finishers according to the results. This seems an extaordinary drop out rate - is this usual?Went for an easy run round the last few miles on saturday and so I was expecting the headwind finish but it was still tough.Date of review: November 1, 2011